Z for Zachariah by Robert C. O'Brien

I thought at the beginning that Ann was a person who was happy and really wanted to see who Mr. Loomis was. She knew how to farm and use a tractor. This is surprising because after the war, schools were probably destroyed, so she probably didn't get an education or driving lessons. Ann is a good plan-maker and she tries to do really good things in order to be safe and to be not hurt. How she had to live alone for a year was incredible. I think that if you're 16, you would stay with your parents until college, but she didn't have parents and she would have starved if she didn't learn how to farm and use a tractor. When Mr. Loomis came, she was very polite, nice to him and gave him hospitality. When he was sick, she made the meals without any germs so that he wouldn't get even sicker. This means that she knows how to be a really good mother. Soon after, when Mr. Loomis became overpowering, she ran away, and that showed that she was brave, and she was intelligent for her age. The last scene in the book showed Ann's courage when Mr. Loomis had the gun pointed at her. For her age, this is a huge sacrifice. However, she got him to not fire at her, and as a conclusion, Ann's bravery won the day.

Reviewed by Anthony.

Peter and the Starcatchers by David Barry & Ridley Pearson

This is an amazing book that explains the magic behindthe well-known tale of Peter Pan. Peter, an orphan,along with his friends from the orphanage discover thepower of an amazing substance called starstuff thatocassionally falls from the sky in the form of of acomet. Along with a friend who is an apprenticeStarcatcher named Molly, the friends work to foil theplans of both Pirates and the maliciousstarstuff-seeking "Others" who are against theStarcatchers in every way. This is a really good bookthat shows how Peter became the boy who would nevergrow up.

Reviewed by Marielle, age 14.